What is an electrical short circuit?

 

How does an electrical short circuit work?

What happens during a short circuit may seem like a mystery, because electric circuits are complicated systems. Simply put, electricity flows through the circuit to power devices such as lamps, household appliances and phone chargers. However, when a "hot wire" touches a neutral or earth conductor in a socket or appliance, a so-called "short circuit" occurs. When a short circuit occurs, excess current flows through the circuit for a short time until the fuse blows or the circuit breaker turns off the circuit. The excessive current flow can lead to such serious consequences as damaged appliances or even a house fire, which can cause devastating damage.

What causes an electrical short circuit?

An electrical short circuit occurs when the hot wire comes into contact with the neutral wire (the wire that makes the return path to the control panel) or the earth wire (the green or bare wire that also returns current to the control panel, especially during a short circuit). What is the cause of this?

Aged wiring. As wires age, they can deteriorate and become a safety hazard. In older homes, wires may even be made of aluminium instead of copper, increasing the risk of overheating and short circuits.

Damaged or weakened cable insulation. Wires in the house and in appliances are insulated to prevent contact. However, if this insulation is damaged, short circuits may occur more frequently. Damage can be caused by natural wear and tear or even rodents eating through the insulation.

Incorrect or loose wiring. If the wiring is loose or incorrectly installed, the wires are more likely to touch each other and cause a short.

How to recognise a short circuit

Because there are several causes of electrical shorts, it's important to look for the warning signs so you can fix the problem in the present and prevent future damage to your home and appliances. To find out if you have a short circuit, ask yourself the following questions:

• Do you smell burning or smoky odours near your electrical outlets?
• Do you feel warm spots on the wall far away from heat sources?
• Are there discoloured spots or burn marks around your sockets?
• Does a particular circuit breaker, perhaps in your kitchen or office, trip more frequently over time?
• If you see exposed wires in a basement, crawl space or other area, are there signs of damage to the wires?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, there may be a short circuit. If you answered yes to more than one, the likelihood of a short is not only greater, but also worrisome enough that you should investigate immediately.

If you have a unit that constantly fails during operation, the short circuit is most likely in the wiring of the unit. If the problem is in the unit itself, it needs to be replaced or repaired. If the unit is fine, the problem lies somewhere else in the cables or the socket that supplies the unit.

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